


Walk

by Pline



Series: The institute is bigger on the inside [2]
Category: Doctor Who (2005), X-Men (Movies)
Genre: Charles walking again, F/M, Friendship, M/M, No Metacrisis, Not Beta Read, Post-X-Men: Days of Future Past, Pre-Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-17
Updated: 2015-05-17
Packaged: 2018-03-31 01:16:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,721
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3958981
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pline/pseuds/Pline
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Charles was slowly coming back to the house when he heard it. That noise. That unique and unforgettable sound. And the sensation along with it. A living machine. A blue box.</p><p>	The TARDIS.</p><p>	The Doctor.</p><p>	Rose Tyler.</p><p>	Charles smiled, “I'm over here, Doctor.” They were back.</p><p>.</p><p>In which there is some running across the galaxies.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Walk

 

**The Charles Xavier's institute, 1973.**

 

 _“_ Voilà! What do you think?”

Charles did not answer Hank immediately. Instead he gave a long look at the plaque. _Xavier's school for gifted students._ It was finally back on the wall next to the gate, a welcoming sign for the new students to come, years after its fall.

 Charles' fall.

 “It's good,” he says. His voice was weak. Hank smiled, a bit sadly, but added nothing.

  _“Is Hank with you, Prof?”_ Charles felt asking in his mind.

  _“Yes, I'm sending him to you.”_

  _“Thanks!”_

 Hank hesitated to let the telepath on his own but Charles assured him he was okay after feeling the boy's unease. After all, he had gotten used to being in a wheelchair.

 Nevertheless, he appreciated Hank's caring and loyalty. He had stayed during the worst of Charles, and never complained. He had seen the older man crying, drunk and pathetic, an addict with no patience or kindness.

 It was a wonder that he had stayed at all.

 Charles moved towards the mansion, slowly. It was a bright day of late summer, and he decided to enjoy the weather before going back in the house. He was spending too much time inside already.

 Alex Summers was the only former student to have come back. Probably because everyone one else was either dead or hated him like Raven did, Charles thought bitterly. It was always hard for him to start thinking about them because it reminded him of his own uselessness. He should have fought harder, tried harder...

 But now, here he was. He was trying again. He remembered having sensed Alex coming from two miles away, and could not have helped looking in his memories.

  _War. Mystique. Coming home. Hope?_

 They had not exchanged a word when they'd met. Charles had been relieved and moved to feel that the young man was happy to see him, and Hank. The two boys had overlooked their past discord to work together in order to make the mansion a school again. Hopefully, a home too.

 It had been over a month since the... _incident_ in Washington, and Charles had not heard from Erik or Raven. He was unsurprised, not even disappointed.

 Charles had searched for Logan and found out the mutant was okay. His future consciousness had left him, he did not remember meeting the other mutants or helping stopped Raven. _Mystique._

 After hesitating to contact him, Charles had decided to leave alone but keep an eye on him, make sure he was not in danger from time to time.

 Erik and Raven were another subject: Charles checked on their health everyday but never talked to them, and never tried to know where they were or what they were doing.

 

-

 

Charles was slowly coming back to the house when he heard it. That noise. That unique and unforgettable sound. And the sensation along with it. A living machine. A blue box.

 The TARDIS.

 The Doctor.

 Rose Tyler.

 Charles smiled, _“I'm over here, Doctor.”_ They were back.

 They came running, of course, and holding hands. Charles saw in the Doctor's mind that only a few months had happened for the Time Lord, when eleven years had passed for the mutant since their last meeting.

 “Charles!” the Doctor shouted when they were close enough. “I found her!”

 “Don't lie, I found you!” Rose corrected, laughing.

 Only ecstasy and love were radiating off of them, Charles was overjoyed at the sight of them. Then the Doctor noticed the wheelchair. “Oh,” he muttered, “what happened?”

 “I was literally shot in the back,” Charles replied, then grinned humourlessly.

 “I didn't know about that.”

 “I'm mostly used to it, I try anyway. But enough of me! Rose Tyler, I've heard a lot about you, dear.”

 She smiled. She was really beautiful, her blond hair was tugged up in a ponytail. Her smile was huge and carefree, her eyes were heavier than in the Doctor's memories, but still warm and loving. She was wearing a pair of blue jeans and a blue tee. She was stunning.

 “My name is Charles Xavier,” he added as he took her hand and kissed it.

 She giggled a bit, “I know. This one talked about you a lot.”

 “Should I worry, Doctor?”

 “Charles, please, you know me.”

 “That's my point,” he joked. Then added more seriously, “I am glad that you are reunited, my friends. I never doubted you would, but it still is a relief to see you together.”

 “Thank you, Charles,” Rose said. “The Doctor told me about your meeting. Thanks. It helped him a lot. He needed to hear it, and I couldn't say it to him then, for obvious reasons... So thanks for being there.”

 “Anything for you, Rose dear,” and he was sincere. “So, both of you, tell me how you did it.”

 The two lovers shared a bright smile. “I did most of it, actually,” Rose stated.

 “I refute everything she says! She would never have crossed the universe if it weren't for me.”

 “How do you explain the phone call?” Rose riposted with a smile.

 “I'm sorry, who opened a bridge again?”

 “It wouldn't have been possible without my informations.”

 It was wonderful to see them tease each other, being so obviously in love that they forgot about everything else around them. Charles coughed loudly, “So?”

 “Oh yes, sorry,” the Doctor apologised but he did not look very sorry. “She called me. Well, she called the TARDIS and I answered.”

 “You make it sound so easy.” Rose remarked. “It took me years before I could make the first call. Inter-universe communication is a tad unusual. But I'm stubborn.”

 “Yeah, you are,” the Doctor said fondly. “Thankfully!” he added after she playfully pinched him.

“Years?” Charles wondered out loud. “But you look twenty three at most.”

“I'm seventy two."

“Sorry?” She was not lying, Charles felt it, but how?

“When I became the Bad Wolf, I... Sorry, do you even know what it means?”

“You opened the TARDIS, absorbed the Time Vortex, killed the God of all Daleks and its army, then brought Jack Harkness back from the dead.”

“He knows what it means,” Rose said to the Doctor.

“I told you he was amazing.” At that, Charles rolled his eyes but smiled.

“What was I saying?” Rose went on. “Oh, yes, so when I became the Bad Wolf, I connected with the TARDIS in a way. I didn't know it at first. I always felt good in there, you know. At first, I didn't notice the connection. I think she liked me from the start, actually?”

“She did,” the Doctor assured.

“Me too,” she looked at Charles again. “So when I got, hm, stuck in Pete's world, I felt horrible. Not because I missed the Doctor – even if I did, obviously – I felt physically ill.” The Doctor took her hand and squeezed it. “Two years after Bad Wolf Bay, I realized it wasn't because of the grief. I went to the best doctors, specialists in all kind of things, and everything.”

“What was wrong?” Charles asked.

“They didn't find out. I had terrible migraines and blackouts, the more time passed, the less I slept. I was tired all the time. And then, we had to face another truth: I wasn't ageing. Mum was so jealous,” she joked.

“When I slept, I had weird dreams, I saw places I'd never been to before, but the images were cut off, like an old telly with bad reception. It was the TARDIS, but it was faint and far away. I was ill because she saved my life. The Time Vortex should have killed me but she saved me by giving me some of her strength. Being away from her for too long was making me weak. I would've died if I'd stayed in Pete's universe. I needed to get back to the TARDIS.”

“And the Doctor, of course. It never felt like home anyway. Even with Mum, Dad, Mickey and Tony. I worked for Torchwood as a consultant over forty years. I left to find a way on my own of returning with the Doctor. Then Mum died, and Dad, and Mickey. Tony had a family of his own. I felt so lonely.”

“So she found a way to contact me,” the Doctor said.

“Yeah. I was working with a team of scientists in New Mexico. One, Sallem, had the idea of using my TARDIS key and my mental connection with her to locate her energy through the Void. We did a lot of complicated stuff, I'm not going to explain everything, but five years later, I called the Doctor.”

“From then on,” the Doctor went on, “we worked as a team, like in the good old days. We stabilized the energy in both universes at the exact same time, long enough for Rose to jump in, so the universes wouldn't collapse.”

“And it worked!” The three of them beamed.

“But do tell us about you,” the Doctor asked. “The TARDIS brought me here because of a shift in time lines. It was connected to you.”

So, as they walked in the garden, Charles wheeling next to them, the mutant explained everything: Cuba, the Vietnam War, the end of the school, the addiction, the loss of his powers, JFK's assassination and Erik's imprisonment.

Then he told them how Logan came to him, using his old body with his future consciousness, and ordered him to snap out of his misery. He told them about Maximoff who helped them free Erik, told them about Trask, and Raven's plan to kill him to avenge their fellow mutants.

“I couldn't give Erik to the authorities,” Charles confessed. “After everything, he is still my friend.”

“I didn't know all that,” Rose said after he finished. “I knew about Charles Xavier, everyone does, but I didn't know the whole story.”

“Were we right to change history, Doctor?”

“Well, I do it all the time, really. I'm where I shouldn't be. So who knows if I'm actually changing history or if I was supposed to be there? Maybe if I don't show up, because I don't want to change the time line, I'm changing it because I was there in the first place? That's something I always wondered. Do I change history or am I part of history? Maybe you changing your time line was actually part of your time line and not having changed your time line would have changed your time line in a bad way.”

“Doctor, you're babbling.”

“Am I? Whatever, Charles, yes, it's okay. It's quite impressive, I must say. I didn't know either all the details of your life.”

“What? The Doctor, not knowing something?” Rose teased.

“Where would be the surprise if I knew everything?”

“That's what they all say.”

“Would you like to meet the boys?” Charles asked before they started teasing each other endlessly again. “Last time, Doctor, you were in a bit of a rush.”

“I've got another idea.”

He raised his eyebrow, “I'm all hears.”

“I promised you one trip, I believe.”

“Oh,” Charles paused. “Are you sure? I won't be able to run if we have to.”

“That won't be a problem.”

But Charles was hesitating. Could he leave the institute now? There was so much to do. A chance existed that they would come back later than intended, or not at all.

 _“Professor? Do you know where is the hammer?”_ Hank asked in his mind.

“Let's go, then,” Charles decided. After all, why not? Hadn't he lost enough already? He could live a little.

_“Professor?”_

“Allons-y!”

Charles was sure of himself now. He only answered Hank before entering the TARDIS. _“_ _It's in the kitche_ _n_ _. Don't worry,_ _I'll be back in a minute.”_

“Welcome to the whole of space and time, Charles!” the Doctor cheered as he worked over the commands. “I have a special destination in mind – don't look, it's a surprise! Be ready to be amazed.”

“You're such a show off.” Rose was laughing.

Charles, even if he saw it before in the Doctor's mind, was speechless at the TARDIS' beauty. It was huge and living. He could feel her humming satisfyingly.

“Ready?”

“Who do you think I am?” Charles talked back with a smile. “Of course I am ready.” While he was admiring the TARDIS, Rose had tied his chair up to the banisters. She was now standing next to him, smiling happily.

With that, they were gone.

 

-

 

“You took me to New New York,” Charles looked at the huge skyscrapers, the flying cars, he felt the mind of millions of people, humans and aliens. “Why?” he whispered in awe – he was on a new Earth! In the future!

“Because we are going to give you your legs back,” the Doctor announced.

“Beg your pardon?”

“Your disability is not a fix point in time, I checked. Here, they know how to make you able to walk again without losing your gift.”

Charles did not know how to respond. He had resigned himself to be disabled for the rest of his life. _He was going to walk again._ The news was overwhelming.

“You okay?” Rose asked gently.

“Do you want to?” the Doctor asked, frowning. “Because we still can go elsewhere. The possibilities are infinite! I know a nice place in 8,743 Dehli were we would eat at this tiny restaurant, I promised them I'd come back for supper once.”

“I need time to think about it. I don't know what to say.”

They were both very comprehensive and left him on his own for a while. From where he was, he could see the city beneath him. Everything was overwhelming. For starters, he was in the future, thousands and thousands of years after his time. Everything he had ever known had disappeared, and in a strange way, it did not sadden or scare him but made him put things into new perspectives.

There and then, he was dead, buried and forgotten. He could have felt very tiny but this realisation was actually a benediction. Suddenly, all appeared more clearly. Why care about the little decisions when it would impact nothing in the great scheme of life?

Did he want to walk again? Yes, he did. He realized, of course, that his disability was not a disease to be cured, and that many people lived with it everyday and they were fine either way. But he wanted to walk again, he wanted to run again. And he had the chance, so yes, he would take it.

Wordlessly, he nodded to the Doctor and Rose who stood a few feet away.

 

-

 

The city was tremendous. There were people everywhere and they all looked different from one another. A faint odour of apple was drifting in the air – “ _the grass”,_ Charles thought.

“When are we Doctor?”

“In the year five billion and forty seven,” the Doctor answered. He and Rose were holding hands. Even if the both of them were faster than Charles was, they stayed next to him and did not seem bothered by that fact.

People were giving him odd looks, he was trying not to look too strangely at them. He saw a man with big red eyes and green skin, and a couple of women looking like cats. Charles' heart did a flip when he saw a young blue girl who looked very much like Raven when they first met.

If their paths were to cross again (and he certainly hoped so), he would tell her that, in the future, a blue-skinned girl could walk freely on the streets. He touched the child's thoughts with his mind. Her name was Kryssa, she was nine. She wanted to be a singer.

“Some things never change,” Charles said out loud.

“Well, I think it's quite true actually. Or, rather, things come back. When people feel nostalgic, old customs reappear. Like this planet! Look at it! Humans felt bad for leaving their big ol' Earth, so they created a new one!”

“I'm glad they did,” Rose said.

“So am I,” the Doctor replied. “Especially without the killing nurse cat ladies.”

The two time travellers laughed. They had arrived at the hospital during their discussion. It was without a doubt the tallest building Charles had ever seen, and even though it looked welcoming, he was apprehensive.

He was so far away from his home. If something happened to him, Hank and Alex would only learn the truth from the Doctor, in the case the Time Lord explained it to them. Charles thought of Raven again, would she care? He tried not thinking of Erik but this was something he could never do. Maybe Charles was not important for him now. Maybe he'd never been.

“Charles?” Rose asked in whisper while the Doctor was talking to a cat nurse. “Why are you sad?”

“I'm not sad,” Charles lied.

“I can feel it. I don't know how you do it, but I can feel what you're feeling. And you're sad. Afraid too. Why?”

“Sorry, I didn't mean to. It's just... What if I don't come back? Would it even matter?”

“Of course it would! Not only because you're important in history, but because there are people back there who care about ya! And it'd matter to me, the Doctor too.”

Charles looked at her. Her hands were clenched and she looked fiercely protective of him, almost daring him to try and think that again. He took a long breath. “I guess you're right. Maybe I needed to be reminded of that once more. Habits die hard, and for ten years I've only thought of myself as broken and useless.”

“You're not,” the tone of her voice was firm. “So, you good?”

Soon, he would walk again, he was on another planet with two friends for whom he cared very much. Even if things went wrong – as they often did with the Time Lord – he could never regret this travel.

He pushed away all his dark thoughts, his doubts and regrets. “Actually, I don't remember the last time I was this good,” Charles answered honestly.

 

-

 

Everything was blurry. Where was he? Why were his eyelids so heavy? Even though Charles did no know what was going on, he was surprisingly to realize that he was not afraid. Even in his waking up state, he could feel the presence of friendly people in the room he was in.

“Charles?” someone said. It was a feminine voice, sweet and soft, and caring.

“Raven?” he slurred, his eyes still closed.

“Oh no, sweetie, it's me, Rose.”

Oh yes, Rose. The beautiful Rose. Strong and smart Rose. Lovely Rose. The Doctor was so lucky she loved him. “Wish I had someone as great as you,” Charles mumbled, and he felt her blush.

“How are you feeling?” she asked.

He slowly opened his eyes. Rose was sitting next to him and holding his hand. He squeezed it. The Doctor was standing in a corner and was looking at them with a smile.

“I'm okay, I guess,” Charles said. He was feeling pretty good despite his tiredness, but even that was dissipating. He looked around him. He was in a white room, there were huge windows from where the city could be seen. An IV was injecting a blue liquid in him– the Doctor had said it was the thing healing him.

“Is it done?” Charles stared at Rose's hand, still holding his. He could not look at their faces if it did not work, and he did not pry into their minds.

“Don't you feel your legs?” the Doctor asked, worried.

Charles closed his eyes again. His legs. Did he feel them? Could he feel the sheet on his skin? Could he move his muscles? Was there a possibility he could walk again?

“Yes,” Charles sobbed out. “I feel them. Oh my god, I feel them.” He moved his legs with precaution. It worked! Now, the unsaid joy of his friends was so strong he could not do anything but feel it with them.

“I want to try walking.” He could feel everything, every muscles of his legs, his ankles, his feet. He could feel every minds from miles away, and the feeling of their walking. It was astounding, but Charles was fighting this feeling off. He had no time to lose. He wanted to walk again.

“Maybe you should wait a little, don't you think?” Rose said.

“No, I'm okay.” Charles pushed the sheet over. He looked at the Doctor.

“Do it,” he said. And Charles did. He moved his legs. Slowly at first, because he wanted to savour the instant, then he wanted to get up, to walk, to run. So, he stood up. His heart was pounding, he laughed.

“I'm standing,” but as he said so, he felt a burning pain in his spine. He stumbled. Rose was at his sides before he could hurt himself. “Well, it seems like it is not going to be that easy.”

“The doctors said you'd be weak for a few days,” she said. “It's normal. Your muscles haven't been used in a while, and your spine is still healing. It's okay.”

 “Yeah,” the Doctor intervened. “We'll wait some time before we start running across the universe. There's a market with people and products from all this galaxy. Fancy a walk?”

 

-

 

They stayed three days on New Earth. Charles started feeling way better only an hour after they left the hospital. Using his legs again was miraculous, but being on a new planet in the future was even more astonishing.

They started travelling together, running around, discovering things, meeting people, saving planets.

Rose and the Doctor were so excited to show him customs, civilizations and aliens. They acted like kids who wanted to impress their cousin they hadn't seen in a long time, which made Charles grinned every time, but also longed for his home.

He would give everything he had to have this kind of love with someone. Perhaps he thought of someone in particular, someone as strong as steel, but if he did he tried not to linger too much on the thought. If Erik ever loved him romantically, it was way too late for this in any case. Even if it hurt, he had to move on.

That was the idea anyway, but it was much harder in reality...

But it was hard to stay down when he was travelling through time and space with two amazing persons as the Doctor and Rose. He could not say how long he was gone because time was different in the TARDIS but it did not matter.

They saw so much together. They went to the past, and the future, and went to Earth and other planets, other galaxies. They met famous people, and people who left no trace on history books but were so important. They saw breathtaking landscape and faced nightmarish creatures.

 And they ran. They ran until their legs gave out and they could not breathe, and it was so great to feel alive again. It was as if Charles had stopped living for ten years but was now given the chance to experience life fully again. Being free of all responsibilities was what made it all worthwhile, he knew that he would have been as great in a wheelchair, having his legs back was just a bonus.

 For a while, Charles was happy as he never thought he could have been again.

 

-

 

The two time-travellers and Charles were running toward the TARDIS. The Doctor had gotten them into a dispute with two one-eyed aliens, on a planet with a name the mutant could not say, because he offended them by confusing two rival species.

“Congratulations, Doctor, on your amazing peacemaker talents!” Rose joked when they were safe inside the time machine. The two of them started bickering for fun, as they always did.

Charles stopped listening to them. Lately, he felt left out. Not because Rose or the Doctor did not want him any more – he had to admit he checked, for he did not want to impose – but because the two of them were so perfect together.

And he missed Earth. He missed the institute. He missed Hank and Alex. He missed Raven. He missed Erik, god, didn't he miss Erik. After everything, he could not stop loving that poor bastard. Charles knew it was not right to think of him that way, but he was still angry.

Nevertheless, the anger was slowly fading away, it would still be there, but other feelings were taking over it. He had tried everything: not to think of him, to accept his feelings, to deal with his heartbreak... In the end, he was jut angry at himself and at Erik for the situation. But being angry was tiring, and Charles did not want to feel tired any more.

He missed their chess games, he missed their long discussions, he missed the feeling of his friend's mind, he missed knowing he was safe... he missed him. But he had to remind himself everyday, even when he'd come home, he could not be with him. Erik made his choice, and he did not choose Charles.

“I want to go home,” Charles said suddenly, efficiently silencing his friends.

“Right now?” the Doctor asked quietly.

“I, yes, I think it's time,” he answered. “I'm ready.”

“Okay.”

“I can't run forever.”

“We get it, Charles,” Rose assured him sincerely. “We knew it would happen. You have a lot to do. You need to get back. It was a bit selfish of us to keep you all for ourselves, actually.”

“It was a bit selfish of me to stay with you.”

They smiled, but for the first time that smile did not quite reach their eyes. The sadness he could feel in them echoed his own. He had to go, though. He could not stay forever and the more he stayed, the more it would be difficult to leave.

Thankfully they understood that and never asked him to stay a bit longer.

The Doctor entered the coordinates without a word. Charles heard the TARDIS purred unhappily. But, as he was about to start their last trip together, the Time Lord stilled, then looked at Charles, “Do you trust me?” he asked.

“You know I do. Why?”

“So, allons-y!”

 Rose and Charles shared a confused look. They could not ask furthermore because the TARDIS left and they had to hang on to the banisters.

 

-

 They hugged one last time without a word. Rose kissed him on the cheek and got back inside the TARDIS, letting the two friends alone. They had no need to talk, because there was nothing that needed to be said. They knew how much they meant to each other, and there were no words to express how much they were grateful for their friendship.

 Charles watched the TARDIS disappeared one last time.

 He let himself shed a tear before walking toward the mansion. The leaves on the trees were newly green, there was the distinguishable smell of spring, strong and fresh.

 Charles' mind brushed over Hank and Alex's ones to make sure they were okay; they were. He smiled. He did not announce his return, he wanted to surprise them.

 He was so caught up in his own mind and nostalgia, that he did not feel all the other people in the mansion.

 “Boys, I'm home!” Charles called out when inside.

 There was the sound of something smashing to the ground, and he chuckled smugly. The Doctor did not tell him how long he was gone but he noticed a few changes in the house, so more than a week, for sure.

 “You sick son of a bitch!”

 Charles' smile fell. He turned around to see Raven, all blue and wearing a white dress and low boots. “Ra... Raven? What are you doing here?”

 “What am I doing here? Someone had to take care of your dumb institute while you were gone one knows where for seven months!”

 “Seven months?” Oh.

 “Yes, seven months! Where were you? I was worried sick! I thought you were dead!” She tried looking mad but Charles could feel her worry and relief.

 “Charles?”

 No. It was impossible.

 He came from the library and looked as mesmerizing as Charles remembered.

 “Erik?”

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so I know this is quite a (not) end but bear with me! There'll be another part, probably the last one actually, and everything will be said and explained.
> 
> Once again, pardon me if I did any mistakes!
> 
> I hope to see you soon again!


End file.
